Waterlands

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WeakfishShoulder season

Bar · New York

Rulers Bar

40.61°N · 73.83°W · Bar · South Shore Bays from Jones Inlet through Shinnecock Bay

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Best score today · 11 PM · Weakfish

70/100Great
Now
3010 AM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.3 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 10 AM · now

Time10ANOW
Score30Fair
Tide2.3 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb2.0 kn · toward SW
Wind11 kn NEgusts 26 · steady
Sea stateRough4.2 ft · 7 s
Air temp60°Mild
WeatherOvercast99% cloud
Water71°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Weakfish is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NYSDEC before you keep a fish.

Source: NYSDEC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Weakfish is best here

Shoulder season for Weakfish · 1 more week at shoulder

Weakfish season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Weakfish · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Weakfish in New York

Spot profile

Rulers Bar

Depth
2-15 ftSlope
Structure
Bar · Inner · ProtectedBar · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonWeakfish

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Rulers Bar

Rulers Bar is a bar in South Shore Bays from Jones Inlet through Shinnecock Bay, New York. Depth is 2-15 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bar, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are bluefish, little tunny and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for little tunny, Spanish mackerel, summer flounder and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, king mackerel, striped bass and black sea bass. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Weakfish
Weakfish hold along channel edges, grass beds, oyster bars and bridge shadows in bays and sounds, usually in 5 to 40 feet of water, and feed hardest at dawn, dusk and after dark. Swim soft plastics or bucktails slowly near the bottom, or drift peeler crab and bloodworms. They have soft mouths, so keep the drag light and the pressure steady.
Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.
Little tunny
Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Long Bar

    Bar · 1.1 mi

    66
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 66
    • Little tunny 66
    • Spanish mackerel 62

    11 kt NEL 12:25 PM · 1.0 ftH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ft

  • Jamaica Bay

    Bay · 0.5 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Bluefish 64
    • Summer flounder 62

    11 kt NEL 12:25 PM · 1.0 ftH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ft

  • West Broad Channel

    Channel · 0.8 mi

    64
    Top: Summer flounderPeak season
    • Summer flounder 64
    • Little tunny 61
    • Bluefish 59

    11 kt NEL 12:25 PM · 1.0 ftH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ft

  • The Raunt

    Flat · 1.0 mi

    62
    Top: Summer flounderPeak season
    • Summer flounder 62
    • Little tunny 61
    • Bluefish 59

    11 kt NEL 12:25 PM · 1.0 ftH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with NYSDEC before you keep a fish.